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Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry logoLink to Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
. 1991 Nov;54(11):1001–1003. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.54.11.1001

Brain biopsy in the management of focal encephalitis.

N E Anderson 1, E W Willoughby 1, B J Synek 1, M C Croxson 1, G L Glasgow 1
PMCID: PMC1014625  PMID: 1666121

Abstract

The value of a brain biopsy in diagnosis and management of suspected herpes simplex encephalitis was studied in 29 patients (16 prospectively and 13 retrospectively). The biopsy showed herpes simplex encephalitis in eight, culture-negative encephalitis in 14, and was normal in three patients. It provided an alternative diagnosis in four patients, for two of whom curative treatment was available. The biopsy was complicated by a fatal intracranial haemorrhage in one patient. The low yield of alternative diagnoses suggests that a brain biopsy is not justified in the routine investigation of focal encephalitis.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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